Power Rangers Star Force
by Anime Master ZERO
Summary: When the Queen Cassiopeia and her daughter Andromeda arrive on Earth, they find themselves enlisting the help of five brave young adults against the evil forces of the Star King, Cepheus. Original PR series.
1. Light It Up!

**Disclaimer:** The _Power Rangers_ title is the property Haim Saban and Saban Entertainment.

This pilot was written as a birthday present for my very good friend Tim, who shall be heading off to Power Morphicon for the weekend. Hope you have fun and I hope you like this story. :)

* * *

**POWER RANGERS STAR FORCE**

**Star Force, Light it Up!**

Space. Lifeless. Quiet. If it were possible to live out there, many would actually say it was quite peaceful. That peace, however, was only to be disturbed as two streams of energy shot across the empty void. A white energy was flying through the vacuum trying to avoid being caught by the black stream right behind it.

"Faster!" a male voice snarled from within the black energy stream. It belonged to a humanoid creature covered in black from head to tie with golden stripes running down his sides. Matching golden armor covered his torso along with gauntlets and boots. Intricate designs had been forged into them. He turned around and a black cape draped from his mantle swung around him. An ornate golden crown rested upon his head as he glared at his crew through a pair of piercing red eyes. His face was jet black and solid like stone, having no other features save for a nose and a mouth. In his hands was a golden staff as tall as he was with a large crystal set into the head.

"Do not let them escape!" he commanded.

"At once, your Majesty!" his crew replied.

The dark man in golden armor turned and faced forward once again. "We cannot let them escape. Not until we have their precious cargo within my grasp!"

As the chase went on, chaos was abound inside the white energy stream. "They're still on our tail!" a frantic voice cried.

"Do not panic, Caelum. We must remain calm," a female voice said serenely.

"But our teleportation power cells are nearly depleted!" the first voice replied.

"Then it is likely that our pursuers are almost empty as well. Prepare to come out of teleportation, Caelum."

"Yes, your Majesty."

As the energy streams approached a galaxy, the energies surrounding them began to fade. The white one was the first to go out, revealing an exquisite white palace. It was cylindrical in shape with towers placed around the walls like compass points. In the middle was a single tower that stood higher than the rest with a shining golden roof. Ornate star patterns had been carved into its walls with additional designs carved along with them to show off what they represented. Within the walls around the castle was an expansive courtyard, which was highlighted by a most incredible centrepiece: a statue of an enormous double-edged sword stuck into a pedestal. The gates were solid gold and guarded by two statues, one black and one white.

Behind the white palace, the black stream of energy faded out, revealing a black castle cubical in shape with four towers on its corners. The ramparts connecting the towers were studded with spikes. In the center it had a tower of its own covered with a golden crown of horns. Its entryway resembled a demon's face with the teeth as the gate.

"Your Majesty, Castle Nebula is approaching fast!" the frantic voice cried out.

"Worry not, Caelum. If we can get close enough to that planet over there, its gravity should pull us away just in time for our power to cut out," the woman said.

"Ohhhh, I hope you're right."

The white palace continued on its path and approached a blue and green planet with white clouds clearly visible all over its atmosphere. Behind it, the black castle closed in.

"At last, we have them now!" the golden-armored man cackled. Suddenly, the white palace pulled away and shot around the planet. "After them!"

"It's no use, your Majesty. We've lost all kinetic power. We're stuck."

The crowned man growled and slammed his fist down. "Curses!" He banged his staff against the floor and the floor slid open, allowing a large crystal orb to rise up on top of a black pedestal. He waved his hand over it and the orb revealed an image of the planet. The black castle was on one side while the white palace was on the opposite side.

"Your Majesty, we're caught in the planet's gravity field," one of the crew reported, "but we're not being pulled in. It appears we are stuck in its orbit."

"And the Star Palace?"

"The same as us."

"Then all hope is not lost. At the very least we are both trapped above this miserable planet."

"What now, your Majesty?"

"If it's cat and mouse she wants to play, then perhaps we need some cheese." The crowned man changed the image on his orb and revealed the inhabitants of the planet below them. "If she's the same as she's always been, she won't be able to resist helping those in need."

o o o

It was a bright and sunny day and two friends had decided to spend it inside a comic and game shop. One, a tall Caucasian male with short dark hair with some scruff on his face wearing jeans and a Green Lantern T-shirt. The other, a tall Asian male with medium length hair wearing blue jeans and a navy tank top. The two of them were sitting at one of the tables placed along the shop's back wall playing card games with each other. The shop was quiet that day. Besides the two of them, the only person there was the clerk behind the country reading a comic book.

"I attack with my monster," the boy in the green shirt declared.

"I stop your attack with my trap and destroy your monster." The boy in blue flipped over one of his backfield cards.

"Motherf-"

"Hey!" The clerk shouted his warning across the store. Just as he was about to return to his comic, the door opened ringing the bell that was over it. Walking into the store was a blond boy wearing red skinny jeans, a matching shirt, and fingerless red and black striped gloves. There was a piece of paper in his hand with bus routes and directions written down on it.

"Hey, can I help you?" asked the clerk.

"Do you have any _Transformers_ toys?" the blond boy asked.

"Just along that left wall," the clerk answered before going back to his comic. As the boy in red headed over, the clerk suddenly remembered something. "Oh, Brian! That vintage Soundwave figure you ordered came in."

"Awesome! Thanks Matt," the boy in blue said before turning to his card game opponent, "Be right back, Chance." He got up from his seat and walked over to the front counter were the clerk pulled out the figure."

"Hey, you collect Transformers too?" asked the boy in red as he walked up carrying up an Optimus Prime action figure.

"No, just Soundwave," Brian answered, "Hey, I haven't seen you in this store before."

"A friend of mine gave me the address. He said I could find some rare stuff here."

"It's true," the clerk Matt confirmed.

"I'm Brian. That's my friend Chance over there."

"I'm Tim. Nice to meet ya!"

"Hey Brian! Come on and finish our game!"

"What're you guys playing?" Tim asked.

"Yu-Gi-Oh!," Brian answered.

"Can I watch?"

"Sure. Come on over."

o o o

"Caelum, I fear that in order to draw us out, our enemy will attempt to attack the civilians of that planet." The interior of the white palace was dark save for a few star-shaped golden lights that were blinking on the walls. The female voice was filled with much concern.

"I had a feeling that might happen, but what can we do?"

"Though it pains me to say it, our best hope is to send my daughter down to seek help."

"What? But your Majesty! We can't possibly send the princess down to that planet. Who knows what evils lurk down there? And as if it weren't enough, our enemy…"

"Please, Caelum. You would not be able to blend in with the planet's inhabitants and I cannot leave the Star Palace. Go. Send my daughter down to the planet and have her recruit five young warriors. She must return with them so that I may bestow upon them the sacred power."

"Oh… Alright, your Majesty. I will send the princess." Reluctantly, the one called Caelum walked off to a separate part of the palace. He arrived in another chamber and entered. "Princess, the Queen wishes your assistance." The request was directed to a beautiful young girl with flowing blonde hair wearing white sparkling robes and a shining tiara. A shining golden necklace hung from her neck with a magnificent medallion adorning it. She turned to Caelum and spoke.

"And she shall have it." The princess touched her medallion and she vanished in a flash of white light.

o o o

A shining white star descended down to the ground from the sky and landed depositing the princess. She looked around to get her bearings and then started running to look for help.

o o o

Within the halls of the black castle, the crowned man sat upon a throne of black stone holding his staff with one hand and tapping his armrest with the other. "Your Majesty." A male creature walked in on three legs, two of which were positioned like human legs while the third extended behind him almost like the lower half of a Centaur. An assortment of gears, wheels, and dials covered his body with two notably larger gears on either shoulder. They seemed to maintain stability on his head, which was cylindrical, but not long. He had a telescopic monocle over his left eye as he stroked his silver metal moustache. "I have excellent news for you. It seems that our target has appeared on the planet."

"The princess has landed on the planet? Out in the open? Let me see on the scrying orb!" The crowned man banged his staff against the floor and the orb he had used earlier rose out of the floor in front of his throne. As he focused the image with his magic, he could see the white-garbed princess making her way through the streets. "Ahhhh, so it is. How generous of the Queen to send her out in the open where we may hunt her down so easily."

"My King, is there anything we can do for you?" asked the clock man.

"Yes, Telescopium. Fetch me my general."

"At once, my King," the one called Telescopium answered and walked off. As he left, another figure entered. His body was shaped like an inverted triangle that was red with silver along the edge. Silver arms and legs protruded from the shape with blue triangles on the gloves and yellow triangles serving to make up his boots. His head was an upright red triangle with an opening for a silver mouth and two shining yellow triangular eyes.

"My King, you've found the princess?"

"Yes, Triangulum," the King replied, "While Telescopium fetches Draco, I want you to assemble a squad of Astral Warriors to aid him in the capture."

"Yes, your Majesty." Triangulum pounded his chest and bowed before walking away.

As he left, Telescopium returned bringing with him a tall knight in dark green dragon skin armor. His gauntlets and boots had been outfitted with claws along with sharp aerodynamic spines. His helmet had been designed to resemble a dragon's head with horns protruding backward and curving down slightly and covering the upper half of his face. The dragon's mouth had been covered with a smooth black mouthpiece with fang-like designs across the middle, completely obscuring any visual of the knight's true appearance beneath his armor as he peered out through two gold eyes. In his hand he carried a sword made of dragon bone made with a crossguard designed to look like two dragon claws. A pair of dragon skulls adorned either side of the blade with their horns interlacing with each other around the crossguard.

The knight knelt before the King and bowed his head. "You summoned me, my King?"

"Yes, Draco. The princess has appeared on the planet below us."

"The Queen has sent her out into the open?" the knight called Draco asked, "For what reason?"

"That is unclear to me now, but it does not matter. We must take advantage of this opportunity."

"Your Majesty." Triangulum returned. "I've assembled the Astrals." He stepped into the room followed by a squad of half a dozen warriors in transparent skin-tight bodysuits, revealing an empty black void dotted with star making up their bodies. Their hands and feet covered in matching gold gloves and boots. Their chests were covered in similarly colored armor adorned with intersecting planetary rings that formed crests on their shoulders. Where the rings intersected over the chest was a small circle the size of a nickel bearing a crown-shaped emblem. Their heads were covered in gold helmets adorned with rings similar to their chest armor with large yellow glowing bulbous eyes. Two more rings with an outer diameter of twelve inches and an inner diameter of ten inches were attached to their backs with razor-sharp edges.

"Excellent, Triangulum." The King turned to Draco. "Draco, take the Astrals with you and hunt down the princess. Get her by any means necessary, but I want her alive."

"Consider it done, your Majesty." Draco stood up and took hold of his sword before turning to the Astrals. "Astral troops, come with me. We're going to catch a princess." He inverted his blade and slammed the tip against the floor, vanishing in a burst of fire while the Astrals disappeared in a cluster of stars.

o o o

Two girls were walking down the street. One was dark-haired wearing a yellow shirt with jeans. The other had fair hair and wore a pink top with white pants. The two of them seemed deeply engaged in a conversation as they made their way along the sidewalk.

"So I was thinking that we should really try to keep emphasis off Jun until we're eight chapters in," the girl in pink suggested.

"But wouldn't the readers suspect something later if we do that?" asked the girl in yellow.

"I didn't say we have to ignore him completely. Just keep emphasis off him for a while."

"Well, okay. I guess that works. By the way, how's the drawing of Jun coming along?"

"It's going slow. My tablet died so I need to get a new one."

"Aww, man."

The two of them were just making their way around a corner when a young girl of their age in white ran into them. She seemed frantic as if she were being chased.

"Hey, what's wrong?" the girl in pink asked, a tone of concern clearly in her voice.

The girl in white looked up at her. "Please, my mother sent me to look for help."

"Your mother?" the girl in yellow asked, "Is she sick?"

Before the girl in white could say anything more, the door to the shop in front of which they were standing opened and Tim, Brian, and Chance stepped outside. She saw them and immediately pulled them closer. "You have to help! You five are my only hope."

"What's…going on here?" Brian asked looking between everyone.

"We only just met her ourselves," the girl in pink answered, "She hasn't said much beyond that she needs help."

"I'm a princess," the girl in white began to explain.

"Right," Chance said disbelievingly.

"No, it's true! My mother sent me to find help. She's waiting in the Star Palace."

"What's the star palace?" asked the girl in pink.

"It's my home and my mother's. It's orbiting your planet as we speak."

"So now you live in a floating castle over the planet?" asked Chance.

"It _is_ pretty far-fetched," Tim agreed.

"It's imaginative, I'll give it that much," Brian added.

"We thought for sure that she was telling the truth that her mom was in trouble," said the girl in yellow, "But now, we're not so sure. All of this together with space and a palace just seems too unreal."

"But I am speaking the truth!" the girl in white pleaded. However before she could continue, Draco appeared with sword in hand.

"There you are, princess."

"Draco!"

"Come with me, princess. His Majesty wishes you to join him at his side."

"So all of that stuff wasn't made up?" asked Tim as he looked at the sudden appearance of the newcomer.

The princess nodded. "You believe me now?"

"It's a bit difficult to, but yeah. Kinda. Slowly," Brian replied as he set his newly purchased toy down against the wall of the building. It felt like a fight could break out and he wanted to keep his hands free just in case.

"We'll protect you then," Chance said as he placed himself in front of her, having seen enough to find the princess' story somewhat believable.

"How quaint. You have these creatures fighting to defend you. But they shall be dealt with easily." Draco pointed his sword skyward. "Astrals, to me!" In response to his command, six meteorites came crashing down and released an Astral each upon impact.

"Can we take them all?" Tim inquired as he placed his own toy down beside Brian's.

"Dunno about you, but I could," Chance replied.

"There's a lot of them," the girl in yellow noted, "I'll help out."

"Me too," added the girl in pink.

"Who are you?" asked Brian.

"I'm Miranda," answered the girl in yellow.

"I'm Jaycee," the girl in pink introduced.

"Nice to meet you. I'm Brian."

"I'm Tim."

"Chance."

"Take them down, but leave the princess unharmed!" ordered Draco. The Astrals banged their right fists against their chests in salute and charged.

Chance was the first to act. As the Astrals came, he charged forward and plowed right into one. He kept low and grappled with it until he was able to lift its legs up and knock it down on its back.

Brian clenched his right hand and held it close while he kept his left open and further from his body. One of the Astrals took a swing at him and he deflected its punch upward before countering with a punch to its lower ribs. The Astral tried to circle around him, but Brian whipped around in the opposite direction and met it with a punch to the stomach followed by a kick to the side of the knee.

Tim backed away as one of the black and gold minions came toward him, trying to make grabs at him. The blond was able to sidestep a straight punch and grabbed onto his attacker's wrist before countering to the face with his elbow. With the Astral stunned, he twisted its arm and flipped it down onto its back. For a moment he looked at his own hands as if in amazement at the feat he had just pulled off.

Miranda kicked an Astral in the stomach as it was trying to go after her. Once she had brought it down, she sent another kick to its head that was able to knock it down completely. However, the creature used the momentum to flip itself back onto its feet and ran in for another go. It swung at her and Miranda blocked every punch from the inside before delivering a punch just below its armor.

Jaycee ran at first, but only to gain distance. Once she was far away, she turned around with her guard up and waited. As her Astral attacker went on the offensive, she blocked its moves and deflected its blows to the side. When its swings failed, it tried to grab her but she ducked under it and gave it several thorough punches to the stomach.

As Chance continued to grapple with his Astral, the sixth one reached down and grabbed him from behind, lifting him off of its companion. Chance struggled only very little before he headbutted his attacker with the back of his head, stunning it enough to loosen its grip on him. With his arms free again, he rammed both elbows into its sides before grabbing its arms and flipping the Astral over his shoulders and onto its back.

Brian's Astral had recovered from the initial attacks and tried punching at him repeatedly. Its blows were deflected inward as the blue-clad boy backed away. When the Astral lunged, he spun around with a sidestepped and grabbed its arm. With a quick transfer of hands, he used his first arm to elbow it in the face and then proceeded to land an open palm strike on its elbow.

"Going for the joints?" asked Chance.

"You know me. Disable and run," Brian answered, "But looks like there won't be any running from this." He kicked behind his opponent's knee and then released it long enough to deliver a strong kick to its back, knocking it flat on the ground while Chance nailed his attacker in the groin.

Tim's Astral had somehow managed to get back on its feet and had found its way to get behind him. It had him trapped with his arms pinned to his sides, but Brian ran in and landed a powerful back kick to its lower spine. The Astral released its hold and Tim shot a heel kick to its shin and turned around to land several blows to its body before hitting it squarely below the chin with a palm strike. His opponent fell hard, but still got back up. With enough distance between them, Tim kicked it several times, knocking it back with every blow.

The Astral fighting with Miranda had recovered from the first attack and was now on the offensive once more. She grabbed onto its wrists as it swung its fists and then pulled it close so she could knee it and then kick it away. The Astral was thrown upward and landed hard on the concrete tumbling a few feet down the road. It got back up and was prepared to re-enter the fight, but got hit by a bus on its way back.

Jaycee's hand was caught by her Astral with both hands and tried to control her with it, but she twisted her arm around and instead placed her opponent in an unfortunate position which she immediately took advantage of, grabbing onto its hands with both of hers to control it and pushing down on its wrists so that it was brought down to its knees long enough for her to kick it in the face.

"Stop fooling around, Astrals, and get the princess!" barked Draco.

The five humans disengaged their opponents and backed up to the princess, standing between her and the Astrals. "You'll be fine," Tim reassured her.

"You can't fight Draco," the princess said, "Come, let us go now." A white light surrounded all six of them and six shining white stars shot skyward, taking the two toys from the sidewalk with them.

"Imbeciles! You let them escape!" Draco roared.

o o o

"Where are we?" asked Miranda. Everybody looked around. The room was dark save for some blinking yellow star-shaped lights along the wall.

"Brave ones, welcome," a female voice from the shadows greeted, "This is the Star Palace." The room was suddenly flooded with lights and the five teens could see that the walls, the floor, and the elegant ceiling were all white. It wasn't very big, but it seemed quite important as against one wall was a magnificent white throne. Sitting on it was a woman with dark hair and rose-red lips wearing a gown of the purest white and brilliant gold. She was older than the princess and upon her head rested a golden crown. It was easily assumed that this was the mother of whom the princess spoke.

"Allow me to introduce ourselves," said the Queen, "I am Cassiopeia. I thank you all for placing yourselves at risk to save my daughter, the princess Andromeda." They turned to the princess, who they now knew was named Andromeda, who curtseyed before them.

"And this here," the Queen, Cassiopeia continued, "is my assistant Caelum." She gestured to a peculiar creature that stepped out. It was silver, short, humanoid in stature, and seemingly mechanical. Multicolored lights all over its chest and back flashed. It had no face, just a blank screen where one should have been.

"Your Majesty, our navigation system indicates that the planet over which we are orbiting is the planet called Earth," Caelum reported.

"Then that must mean these creatures…" Andromeda began.

"…are humans," Cassiopeia finished.

"So you mind telling us what's going on?" asked Chance.

"Yeah, I'm actually really confused too," Tim said looking around the room.

"My daughter, Caelum, and I have traveled lightyears fleeing from a great evil of the universe," Cassiopeia explained, "We are on the run from the one known as the Star King, Cepheus. He commands Castle Nebula along with minions of his own."

"You've already fought the Astrals," said Andromeda, "That man you saw commanding them is Cepheus' right hand, Draco."

"He also has under his command the intelligent Telescopium and spirited Triangulum," continued Cassiopeia, "But there is more than that. Cepheus has in his possession one of the greatest, and most dangerous, treasures in the universe: the Star Sceptre. With it, he can manipulate the very stars themselves."

"That's bad, right?" asked Jaycee.

"Extremely," responded Brian.

Cassiopeia turned to Caelum, "Show them." Caelum tapped his chest a few times and his face lit up to reveal a golden staff. He pressed a few more buttons and he projected it into the air as a hologram. "The Star Sceptre is powered by a white dwarf star located inside the crystal on its head. What makes this particular star special is that it holds a special power that allows whoever wields the sceptre to control the other stars. However this power was deemed too dangerous, so it was sealed away in one of the farthest reaches of the universe. But it was found and recovered by Cepheus, who uses its power for evil."

"If he already has one of the strongest weapons in the universe, why does he want Andromeda?" asked Miranda.

"Maybe he wants a bride," Chance suggested.

"Ugh! Don't even dare put that image in my head!" Andromeda yelled.

"No, that is not it," Cassiopeia answered, "You see, the Star Sceptre's power is not complete. When it was created eons ago, its power was split into seven pieces. One was placed under the protection of my family. It has been passed down the line since then. Most recently, it is in the possession of my daughter."

"And the others?" asked Tim.

"Cepheus has already gathered them all. All he requires now is the final piece."

"So that's why he's after her. But why send her down to find help if she's so important?" asked Tim.

Caelum turned off his hologram and turned to Tim. "Well, I can't exactly blend in on your planet and the Queen cannot leave the Star Palace."

"Okay, that answers that question. But now, why do you want us?"

"Given our current state, we cannot do anything but remain with the confines of the Star Palace. No doubt Cepheus will try to draw us out into the open by attacking the inhabitants of your planet. That is why we chose you five. To act as guardians on behalf of myself for both your planet and as the personal guard of my daughter. To that end, I offer you the power of our most sacred warriors."

"Join hands with me," Andromeda said as she held her hands out. The five teens looked at each other.

"Well, if we're going to save a princess…" Chance took Andromeda's hand.

"She needs our help," said Jaycee and she took Chance's free hand.

"There really is no choice here, is there?" Tim asked, "We have to project our home planet too." He took Jaycee's hand.

"If Chance is getting into this, he's going to need someone to keep him held back." Brian grabbed Tim's hand.

"We're in this together then." Miranda took Brian's and Andromeda's hands.

"Now close your eyes," the princess whispered. Everybody did as she said and her body started to glow white. The light spread to everybody and it began to change color for each of them. Cassiopeia brought a chest out from under her throne as Caelum stepped forward with five silver star-shaped emblems, each about the size of a belt buckle, with a hollow circle in their centers. He stood in the center of the circle and held the items up. The Queen opened the chest and five golden medallions about two inches in diameter floated out and hovered over everybody.

"Speak your names."

"Chance."

"Miranda."

"Jaycee."

"Brian."

"Tim."

Cassiopeia waved her hand and Caelum released the emblems, letting them float with the medallions.

"Chance, strong and bold. I present you with the Star of the Bull, Taurus." A medallion stopped in front of Chance bearing a glyph of a circle with horns. "You shall be armed with the Taurus Rifle, a weapon with exceptional range. With its powerful long-range shots, you shall be able to defend those you love from any range. The Taurus Rifle also possesses a second form, the Taurus Dual Fire. While its firepower is not as great as its other form, it is significantly faster. You shall also pilot the Taurus Starzord, a machine of great power. Its thick armor is near-impenetrable. Do not be fooled, however. It is also built for speed for powerful ramming attacks."

"Miranda, self-reliant and assertive. I present you with the Star of the Ram, Aries." A medallion came down to Miranda bearing a glyph of a V with its arms curving off into horns. "You shall be armed with the Aries Kamas, versatile lightweight dual weapons. With their curved blades and long handles, you shall be able to execute swift and tricky attacks. Hidden within them is a power to allow you to channel electricity through the blades. You shall pilot the Aries Starzord, which comes equipped with weapons for restraining large targets. Though not as fast as the Taurus Starzord, it too is capable of ramming attacks."

"Jaycee, independent and headstrong. I present you with the Star of the Goat, Capricorn." A medallion descended before Jaycee bearing a glyph of a cursive uppercase N with a long tail that looped up and over down back left. "Your weapons shall be the Capricorn Fans, weapons made of one of the hardest substances of the universe. Their sharp edges allow for swift slashing attacks while their sides can act as small lightweight shields. Folding them shut will permit you to execute precision strikes. They are fit for the quick and agile fighter. Additionally, you can harness the power of storms with them. You shall pilot the Capricorn Starzord. While it is mostly a support unit, it comes equipped with its own arsenal of weapons. It will prove to be a great asset to the team in combat."

"Brian, clever and inwardly reflective. I present you with the Star of the Scorpion, Scorpio." A medallion came down to Brian bearing a glyph of a lowercase M with an arrow-shaped tail pointing to the right. "Your weapon shall be the Scorpio Staff. Its long reach shall be an extension of your own. Accurate and deadly, it is a weapon that lives up to its namesake. If you should find yourself falling short on your reach, however, the staff shall meet your needs. You shall pilot the Scorpio Starzord, a machine designed for stealth and sneak attacks. Armed with hidden weapons throughout its body, it can lure enemies into a false sense of security and strike without a moment's notice."

"Tim, outgoing and brave. I present you with the Star of the Lion, Leo. The star of the leader." The final medallion descended and hovered before Tim bearing a glyph of a small circle with a long tail looping up and curving down then out. "You shall wield the Leo Sword, an unbreakable blade made of the finest metal in the universe. Swift, accurate, and powerful, it is a perfect balance of many great attributes. Its special technique, Leo's Roar, infuses it with the power of the Lion for a single powerful strike. You shall command the Leo Starzord, a swift and powerful machine. With its sharp claws and crushing jaws, it is a versatile weapon on the battlefield."

"Should you all find yourselves in need of more power, your weapons can combine into one called the Starlight Blaster. And if you find that not even your Starzords can defeat an enemy, they can combine together to form the great and powerful Star Force Megazord."

"Reach out and touch the medallions," instructed Caelum. The five teens raised their hands and brought their hands to the shiny golden discs. As their fingers touched the smooth shining precious metal, Caelum brought the star emblems to each of them. "I now present you with your Star Transers. Place your medallions inside them and receive the power." Everybody did as they were told. The moment the medallions were locked in, images flashed through their minds as the power and knowledge of the stars and the guardians were poured into them. Fighting techniques, weapons, and other weapons were downloaded into their minds.

"From this day forward, you are now guardians of the stars and protectors of the princess Andromeda known as the Star Force," said Cassiopeia.

"That's cool and all, but can we come up with our own team name instead?" asked Miranda.

"Oh, that sounds like fun!" Caelum exclaimed.

"How about we name ourselves after those teams of heroes since the early nineties?" Brian suggested.

"You mean the Power Rangers?" asked Tim with excitement in his voice.

"Yeah them." An exclamation of excitement escaped from the blond teen.

"You must be a huge fan," Jaycee noted.

"Ever since I was a kid." Tim looked down at his medallion and Star Transer. "I was saved from a monster by the Red Ranger when I was little. Since then my biggest dream was to be a Power Ranger."

"Power Rangers…" Chance thought the name out loud. "I like it."

"Then you shall henceforth be known as the Power Rangers," declared Cassiopeia.

Suddenly, Caelum began yelling. "Warning! Warning! Danger! Danger!" He punched the buttons on his chest and his face projected another hologram.

"That's our city!" exclaimed Miranda.

"Hang on. I'll zoom in." Caelum adjusted the image and zoomed in on where the commotion was taking place.

"It's Draco," Andromeda said recognizing the dragon knight.

"He's terrorizing the people!" Tim exclaimed.

"It is as I feared," Cassiopeia said solemnly, "In order to lure my daughter and myself out into the open, Cepheus is attacking your planet's inhabitants knowing full well that we always help out those in need."

"Well he never counted on one thing," Chance replied, "Us."

"So how exactly do we use these?" asked Jaycee.

"You have to put the medal in so you can light it up," answered Andromeda.

"Light it up…" Tim smiled, "That's it!"

"You look happy," Brian noticed.

"I'm just so excited! I'm finally gonna be a Power Ranger!" Tim answered.

"Then go forth and stop Draco," said Cassiopeia.

"May the power protect you," Andromeda wished.

"Let's go, everyone." Tim put his medallion into his Star Transer and held it out in front of him as everybody followed suit. "Light It Up!"

"Taurus Star Force Power!" Chance's Star Transer burst into multiple green stars that streaked around his body. White gloves formed on his hands as matching boots appeared over his feet. The green stars circled his waist and formed a white belt with a one-foot blade attached to his right hip. As the stars came back together, a larger version of his medallion about four feet in diameter appeared and planted itself in the center of his chest, transforming his clothes into a green skin-tight bodysuit with gold stripes running down the sides. A bull spirit charged in from behind mooing and upon contact formed a green helmet over his head resembling a bull's head with two silver streamlined crests along the sides resembling horns, gold eyes on the sides, and nostrils over his forehead with a silver nose ring overlapping his black visor which covered half his face, the lower half covered by a mouthpiece the same color as the rest of his helmet.

"Aries Star Force Power!" Miranda's Star Transer burst into multiple yellow stars that streaked around her body. White gloves formed on her hands as matching boots appeared over her feet. The yellow stars circled her waist and formed a white belt with a one-foot blade attached to her right hip. As the stars came back together, a larger version of her medallion about four feet in diameter appeared and planted itself on her chest, transforming her clothes into a yellow skin-tight bodysuit with gold stripes running down the sides and a short skirt just below her belt. A ram spirit charged in from behind her bleating and upon contact formed a yellow helmet over her head resembling a ram's head with two adornments on the sides resembling ram horns, gold eyes just before the horns, and a black visor covering her eyes while her mouth was covered by a yellow mouthpiece.

"Capricorn Star Force Power!" Jaycee's Star Transer burst into multiple pink stars that streaked around her body. White gloves formed on her hands as matching boots appeared over her feet. The pink stars circled her waist and formed a white belt with a one-foot blade attached to her right hip. As the stars came back together, a larger version of her medallion about four feet in diameter appeared and planted itself on her chest, transforming her clothes into a pink skin-tight bodysuit with gold stripes running down the sides and a short skirt just below her belt. A goat spirit charged in from behind her bleating and upon contact formed a pink helmet resembling a goat's head with two silver streamlined crests curved backward that looked like goat horns, gold eyes just slightly ahead of the horns, and a black visor covering her eyes while a pink mouthpiece covered the lower half of her face.

"Scorpio Star Force Power!" Brian's Star Transer burst into multiple blue stars that streaked around his body. White gloves formed on his hands as matching boots appeared over his feet. The blue stars circled his waist and formed a white belt with a one-foot blade attached to his left hip. As the stars came back together, a larger version of his medallion about four feet in diameter appeared and planted itself in the center of his chest, transforming his clothes into a blue skin-tight bodysuit with gold stripes running down the sides. A scorpion spirit crawled forward from behind him and upon contact formed a blue helmet resembling a scorpion with a crest down the middle of the back to represent a tail, four gold eyes on the front, and two silver claws adorning the sides while slightly overlapping the bottom of his black visor, which covered his eyes while a blue mouthpiece protected his lower face.

"Leo Star Force Power!" Tim's Star Transer burst into multiple red stars that streaked around his body. White gloves formed on his hands as matching boots appeared over his feet. The red stars circled his waist and formed a white belt with a one-foot blade attached to his right hip. As the stars came back together, a larger version of his medallion about four feet in diameter appeared and planted itself in the center of his chest, transforming his clothes into a red skin-tight bodysuit with gold stripes running down the sides. A lion spirit pounced on him from behind roaring and formed a red helmet resembling a lion's head on contact with a pair of golden eyes over the top of his head, mane-like designs adorning the rear half of his helmet, and a black visor obscuring his eyes located inside the lion's mouth with silver fang designs overlapping it while a mouthpiece covered the lower half of his face matching the color of his suit.

Once morphed, the five Rangers shouted in unison, "Power Rangers Star Force!"

o o o

Five shooting stars colored green, pink, red, blue, and yellow streaked down from the sky and landed in the city, depositing the Power Rangers on the street. All around them people ran screaming in panic as they tried to flee from the attacking invaders.

"Astrals, destroy everything in sight!" Draco ordered, "We'll draw Cassiopeia and Andromeda out no matter what!"

"Guess what, Draco. You already have!" Tim stepped in front of the dragon knight with his friend flanking him on either side.

"What? How do you know who I am?" Draco demanded.

"We were sent here by Cassiopeia."

"Servants of evil beware our strength!" Chance flexed his arms over his head and then widened his stance as he brought his hands down in an outward circular motion and placed them in front of him at two separate distances from his body.

"We are the defenders of the Earth!" Miranda held up her hands mantis style and brought them up over her head as she knelt down before standing up straight and sticking her leg out to her right while flexing her right arm and placing her left hand on her bicep.

"We are the protectors of the innocent!" Jaycee opened up with a crane stance and then planted her left foot back down only to slide it out and lean her body in that direction while keeping her right arm in front of her chest as her left arm flexed. She then stood up tall with one hand horizontal by her hip and her other hand over her head.

"We fight for peace and justice!" Brian got down on one knee and planted both hands on the ground. He rose back up with his left foot forward and his left hand positioned in front of his right shoulder and his right hand just past his left elbow. A shift in weight brought his body back as he turned it sideways and placed his right fist behind his head while his left was kept outstretched.

"In the name of all that is good, we shall defeat you!" Tim crossed his arms over his chest and then bent his knees to lower his body as he brought his hands over his head with his fingers spread and curved like lion claws before shifting into a _kung fu_ tiger stance with his right arm mostly outstretched though bent slightly at the elbow with his left hand positioned close to his ribs palm up.

"_**We are the Power Rangers!"**_

"So Cassiopeia's finally found someone to do her dirty work for her," Draco said mockingly, "Astrals, destroy them! And this time, no mercy." He stepped back to allow his squad of twelve Astrals to fight. The foot soldiers reached behind their backs and pulled off their rings, putting one in each hand holding them as chakrams.

"Star Sabres, guys!" On Tim's command, the Rangers pulled their blades out of the sheathes on their hips and charged. The Red Ranger ducked several times as one of the Astrals made horizontal swings at him with its chakrams. After the fifth swing, he blocked its next one just inside the elbow and pounded it in the face with the pommel of his Star Sabre. The Astral reeled back but recovered quickly, proceeding to swing again. Tim blocked the circular blades with his weapon as he backed away with each move. He quickly shifted over to the offensive and swung his Star Sabre downward, but the Astral crossed its rings over its head and blocked it. However that didn't stop Tim from landing a powerful kick on its stomach and forcing it back. He had no time to rest, however, as a second Astral charged in to pick up where the other had left off.

Two Astrals tried to attack Jaycee, but she backflipped away and kicked one under the chin in the process. Once she was back on her feet, she lashed out and kicked the other in the chest as it tried to attack her. Using her Star Sabre, she blocked the first one as it slashed at her with its chakrams. The Astral swung its arms from the outside inward, giving her the opportunity to block them just inside its elbows with her own arms. Once she had gotten past its guard, she turned her Star Sabre around in her hand so that it hooked around her opponent's left arm and used her left elbow to push its right arm up and over, crossing them both and locking them in place while she maintained control and proceeded to kick it. After a few blows, she released her hold and dealt a final kick that sent the Astral flying. But then the second one that had attacked her rushed swinging its arms around wildly in an attempt to cut her to ribbons. Its wide attacks left it open, however, allowing Jaycee to punch it in the face with the pommel of her weapon before she got down and swept her leg out to knock it down.

Brian spun around on his foot and slammed his left heel into an Astral's stomach with a spinning back kick. With his opponent stunned, he took advantage of it and keep up his attack, landing one kick after another. While he was preoccupied, another Astral drew back its arm and one of its chakrams began to glow. With its target in sight, it threw the circular weapon at the Blue Ranger. The energy buzzing through it reached Brian's ears and he disengaged his opponent, leaping to the side just in time resulting in the chakram hitting the other Astral. With his Star Sabre held inverted in his left hand, he dashed toward the enemy that had just thrown his weapon and punched it several times. He then moved in behind the Astral and landed a blow to the back of its neck with the blunt edge of his weapon.

Miranda dropped to her knee as an Astral tried to make a jab at her. She quickly then thrust her Star Sabre up through the center of the chakram and pulled, yanking it out of her attacker's hand. While she was down, she dropped even lower and swept her leg out knocking the Astral off his feet. She leapt back up just in time to dodge another one's attacks. Swinging its arms back and forth it tried to cut her, but the Yellow Ranger succeeded in dodging it. She quickly tried to go on the offensive with her blade, but it was blocked and she was kicked back. Miranda backflipped to recover and held off as her opponent was joined by the Astral she had knocked down earlier. Having recovered its chakram, it charged up both of the disc-like weapons along with its partner and they threw them at once. Miranda moved quick using her Star Sabre to deflect them and knock them away. Once she had knocked the fourth one aside, she moved in. Jumping high into the air, she performed a flip and landed on both Astrals feet first and knocking them flat on their backs.

One Astral charged at full power, but Chance ducked under its horizontal swings and grappled it around the waist. He raised himself up and tossed his opponent over his shoulder. The Astral landed on his back and he quickly turned around and punched into its chest repeatedly. A second Astral jumped up and raised its arms, ready with a downward slash with both chakrams. The Green Ranger stepped back and the circular blades hit the other Astral instead. He moved in quick and performed a double roundhouse kick into his new attacker's face. It fell back but used the momentum to roll back onto its feet. Meanwhile the first Astral got up only to be met with another flurry of punches. Chance fought viciously. As the second Astral came back for another go, he grabbed hold of his current opponent's armor and pulled him around, using it as a humanoid shield prior to kicking it into the oncoming attacker.

"Come on, Astrals! They're humans! They're weak! How can they be giving you any trouble?" roared Draco. An Astral came flying toward him and he stepped back to let it hit the ground. Growling he grabbed it by its neck and threw it back into the fight.

"We'll show you just what we humans can do!" Tim did two front flips and a cartwheel the last of which he exited with a push off the ground with his hands. As he turned around in the air, he came to land on top of one of the Astrals and knocked it down. With his Star Sabre in hand, he drew his arm back and thrust it down toward the solar plexus. He missed slightly and instead struck the crown emblem. The Astral let out a loud painful squeal and exploded in a flash of bright white light leaving behind only its empty armor, gloves, boots, and helmet.

"Guys!" he yelled, "Listen! Aim for the tiny crown symbol on their chests. That's their weak spot."

"That tiny little thing?" asked Jaycee, "That's going to be hard to hit."

"Hard, but we're gonna do it anyway!" Chance said pumped as he tackled an Astral to the ground. Once he had it on his back he brought up his sword arm and hammered at the emblem with his Star Sabre's pommel until it broke and the Astral vanished, leaving behind its armor. Behind him, Miranda grabbed her opponent's arm as it lashed out with a jab and twisted it to render the Astral immobile long enough for her to hit the emblem. She was quickly left with just an empty glove to hold onto.

Jaycee and Brian backed up to each other while fending off their respective attackers. The latter turned to the Pink Ranger. "Up and over?"

"Let's do it!" Brian formed a cup with his hands and Jaycee stepped up and he tossed her over his head. She was sent flying and landed on top of his Astral. The other one came at Brian while his back was turned but he lashed out with a back kick and knocked it down. With both Astrals flat on their backs, the Blue and Pink Rangers brought forth their Star Sabres and pounded them against the emblems causing them to burst in flashes of light. The two of them got up.

"Just what are these things made of?" asked Brian as he kicked an empty torso protector.

o o o

"Void energy." Telescopium laid out the plans of the Astrals in front of Triangulum. "It is the very void of space itself. Harnessing it into a solid form creates an extremely powerful material. However, it is highly unstable. The containment unit on the Astrals' chests can stabilize that void energy. However should the unit be damaged, the void energy cannot be contained and as a result the Astral will vanish, returning to nothingness once again."

"Ah, that makes sense," Triangulum said nodding.

"Then please try not to forget it every single time you're making new ones," Telescopium said with a moan.

"Enough! Come to the throne room this instant!" Cepheus yelled. Telescopium and Triangulum quickly ran into the throne room. The King was seated on his throne observing his scrying orb when they arrived.

"What is it, your Majesty?" the telescopic creature asked.

"Look at this." Cepheus pointed to the orb and his two henchmen looked. "Who are these multicolored pests and how are they able to defeat my Astrals? Did Cassiopeia recruit them?"

"Perhaps. Let me have a closer look." Telescopium stepped up to the scrying orb and focused his monocle on the Rangers, trying to zoom in on the medallions on their chests. "Ah! The signs of Leo, Capricorn, Taurus, Scorpio, and Aries!"

"So they _are_ Cassiopeia's recruits!" Cepheus stood up and banged the Star Sceptre on the floor. "Leave it to that woman to find someone else to do her dirty work. I swear they had better not get in my way. Draco, destroy them!"

o o o

"Yes, my King. I'll tear them apart myself with Eltanin!" Draco stepped into the battle. He shoved an Astral out of his way and swung his sword at Miranda, causing a shower of sparks to explode from her chest where his blade had hit her. He moved in and struck Brian down followed by Jaycee. Chance blocked a few of his blows with his Star Sabre, but Draco locked blades with him and grabbed his neck with his free hand and threw him over his head, landing a hit with his sword as he flew through the air. He approached Tim while he was busy with Astrals and struck him across the back. The Red Ranger fell and he kicked him hard enough to send flying across the street.

"I'm done with this." Chance got up and sheathed his Star Sabre. "Taurus Rifle!" He held his hands out and in a flash of green light a long white and green firearm resembling a pump action shotgun appeared in his grasp with two golden forward pointing horns engraved on the sides and along the barrel.

Brian got up as well and put his Star Sabre away too. "Scorpio Staff!" There was a flash of blue light and it formed in his hands a six-foot long blue and silver staff with the last foot on each end resembling a scorpion tail intertwined with a claw.

Miranda got to her feet and sheathed her blade before holding her hands out to her sides. "Aries Kamas!" Two flashes of yellow light appeared and they deposited pair of yellow sickle-like weapons into her hands with the blades resembling ram horns.

Jaycee stood up and after sheathing her Star Sabre held her hands out and cried, "Capricorn Fans!" In that instant, two flashes of pink light appeared and delivered unto her a pair of pink steel fans with the outermost ribs of each resembling goat horns and the glyph of Capricorn featured as their design.

Tim put away his Star Sabre and held his right hand above his head. "Leo Sword!" There was a flash of red light and a sword appeared with a crossguard resembling a red lion's head with a two-and-a-half-foot long double-edged straight blade extending out from its mouth.

The remaining seven Astrals regrouped around Draco. The dragon knight clenched his fist as he and his troops faced off against the Power Rangers, armed now with their weapons. He raised his sword Eltanin over his head and pointed forward. "Charge!" A loud bang filled the air and one of the Astrals fell back and was promptly destroyed.

Chance cocked his rifle and took aim again. "I didn't hit the boss, did I?" he asked.

"No you did not," answered Brian.

"Warning shot then."

The Astrals and Draco charged and so did the Rangers. They met halfway down the street and engaged each other in combat. Now armed with dual weapons of her own, Jaycee was on even terms with her opponent. Her fans worked beautifully as both defensive and offensive weapons. After deflecting a blow with the side, she moved in to slash with the edge. As one close-range fighter against another, she and the Astral were fairly even. The void creature backed away several steps and charged up its chakrams before throwing them. Jaycee backflipped out of their way, but they kept coming after her. After the fourth flip she was back on her feet and deflected them with her weapons.

"My turn now. Capricorn Typhoon!" Her fans started to glow pink and Jaycee threw them. They spiralled through the air and surrounded the Astral, kicking up a strong wind around it. The fans moved with the twister and slashed away at their target from different angles. The whirlwind lasted five seconds before dropping the Astral back on the ground and the fans returning to the Pink Ranger's hands. She then ran up to it while it was down and closed one of her fans before stabbing it into the emblem.

Miranda possessed the same advantage as Jaycee, armed with dual weapons of her own. With quick motions she was able to match the speed of the Astral's attacks. Making use of her weapons' shape, she waited for another attack to come and hooked her kamas through the chakrams. She pulled them out of her opponent's hands and threw them away before getting down and hooking them behind its legs and pulling back. The Astral was yanked off its feet but moved quick to recover.

"Aries Flash!" Miranda's kamas glowed yellow for a moment and the blades became electrically charged. Before her opponent could get back up completely, she struck it and sent several volts through its body and stunning it. The Astral temporarily paralyzed, she moved quick and struck its emblem with her kama resulting in a flash of light and its empty armor clattering to the ground.

Brian spun his staff and swung it into the side of an Astral then twisted his arms around and hit its knee with the other end. Then he struck the other knee with the first end before drawing back and thrusting it into its stomach. Another Astral came at him from behind but he pulled his weapon back and struck it in the chest. He turned around as the second attacker recovered and started blocking its chakrams with his staff. As he backed away, the first Astral recovered and decided to pick someone else. It headed straight for Tim.

"Scorpio Sting!" The stinger barb from one end of the staff shot out trailing a wire behind it and wrapped around the escaping foe. "Come here!" The wire retracted and pulled the Astral back in. Once it was close he disengaged the stinger and retracted it before pounding the end of his staff right into the creature's emblem. A white light flashed and its armor rolled around on the ground empty. The other Astral came at him and Brian kicked the helmet by his feet into it, knocking it away. "Chance, take it away!"

"With pleasure." As the Astral staggered back, the Green Ranger bashed the butt of his rifle into the base of its spine. It turned around and was met with a fist in its face. Chance bashed it with his weapon once more before shoving the barrel against the emblem and pulling the trigger. The Astral was blown back and burst, leaving only its armor to fall harmlessly to the ground. Two more Astrals arrived and charged toward him. Chance cocked his rifle and fired again, but missed. He turned to one of his attackers and aimed, but the other one attacked him while his back was turned and knocked him down. He was able to roll back onto his feet and he fired, but missed when his aim was offset by an Astral kicking him.

"Okay, you want to fight two on one? Let's do it. Taurus Dual Fire!" A green light surrounded Chance's rifle and suddenly it split into two identical green lightweight laser pistols designed to look like bull horns. The Astrals charged in and attacked. He blocked each with one arm and kicked them back one at a time. They stumbled back for a bit then threw their chakrams at the same time. Chance pointed his weapons at the incoming razor rings and fired, sending out bolts of green energy from the barrels. He shot them all down and then started shooting at the Astrals. Explosions of sparks showered out from the points they were hit and they fell back. Chance ran up between them and pointed a pistol at each of their emblems. He squeezed the triggers and destroyed them, reducing the bodies into empty pieces of armor.

Tim's Leo Sword clashed with Draco's Eltanin. The dragon knight was on a whole other level than the Astrals. His attacks were made with speed, precision, and power. However, Tim was not outmatched. The Red Ranger had, after all, been granted the knowledge and skills by the stars, including sword fighting. Every attack his opponent made, he blocked, parried, and deflected. Draco snarled as he swung low to aim for the legs, but Tim was able to avoid it by jumping over his blade, bending his knees in the process. While he was in the air, his opponent was wide open giving him an opportunity to attack. As his feet came back down to the ground he swung his sword down and slashed Draco across the right shoulder. The dragon knight roared and thrust his own weapon at him, landing a blow when Tim had left himself open the moment his boots touched solid earth. He didn't let that throw him off balance, however. The Red Ranger recovered fast and they continued their duel. Sword against sword in one magnificent clash. At one moment their blades locked and the two combatants pressed hard to overpower the other.

"You cannot win against the Dragon, human," Draco snarled as his own strength started pushing his opponent back. Tim struggled, but he found himself being pushed down. He could feel himself being bent backwards by the dragon knight's power.

"It's not all about strength, you know." And with that, he grabbed Draco's shoulder with his free hand and let himself fall. He took his opponent down with him and when he landed on the ground, he used the momentum to roll and used his feet to kick him off and over him. Tim completed his roll and got back up while Draco landed hard on his back. The dragon knight roared and was quickly back on his feet.

"Leo's Roar!" The eyes on his lion head crossguard lit up and flames poured out of the mouth, completely engulfing the blade. At this point, the other Rangers had finished off the Astrals and joined him at his sides. "Everyone, attack!"

Chance opened first, bombarding Draco with his twin laser pistols in rapid succession before recombining them into their rifle form and finishing with a shot to the chest. Jaycee went in next, ducking under Draco's sword and slashing his side with her fans. Next was Brian who blocked the blade with his staff and then jabbed the end into his stomach. Miranda then dove in low and rolled along the ground before striking at his legs with her kamas.

"It's over!" Tim held his sword up and swung. A wave of fire shot forth from his flaming blade and slashed through Draco, creating several explosions around him as he was thrown backward.

o o o

"No!" Cepheus' fist slammed against the armrest of his throne. "How can my general be losing to those lesser life forms? It's not possible! I must rectify this immediately!"

"Your Majesty, what about the Star of Might?" suggested Telescopium, "You still have possession of its power after you conquered the C004 galaxy."

"Ah yes, the Star of Might! That will do perfectly!" Cepheus rose up and walked out to the balcony. He looked up into the depths of space and held aloft his staff, the Star Sceptre.

"I call upon the Star of Might. Give me your power in this fight." The dwarf star inside the Star Sceptre started acting volatile as rays light shot out into space, causing many of the stars to move. In fact, they were all aligning to form a single trail of stars. "I command you now to behold this sight and bathe my monster in your light!" From the outermost reaches of space, a powerful stream of starlight traveled down the line of stars and shot straight to Earth.

o o o

Down on the planet's surface, the beam of starlight came down upon Draco and bathed him in its radiance. In a massive flash of light and a fiery explosion, the dragon knight grew into a giant. With his growth came a transformation. His boots changed into clawed three-toed dragon's feet, his gauntlets suddenly bore claws, a long tail grew out, a pair of wings sprouted from his back, and his mouthpiece broke off to reveal a reptilian mouth filled with sharp teeth and fangs. Grasping Eltanin in his hand, Draco spread his wings and let out a roar.

o o o

"Oh no!" Caelum cried, "Cepheus has unleashed the power of the Star of Might on Draco!"

"Calm down, Caelum," said Cassiopeia, "Remember that those young warriors have all the powers of the ancient guardians."

"Of course! The Starzords!"

o o o

With Draco looming over them, time was short. Standing together side-by-side, the five teens made circular motions with their arms and then thrust their right hands toward the sky. "Spirits of the stars, we call upon you to lend us your power!"

"Green Taurus Starzord!" A light shined forth from the constellation of Taurus and illuminated the bull carving on the Star Palace's wall with a green radiance. The light then shined upon the Earth and from a large mountain range, a big green tank burst out from the rocks. It rode low but fast on four sets of treads which were located under two pairs of leg-like decorative designs. The front was a large bull's head with golden eyes, horns, and a nose ring.

"Yellow Aries Starzord!" Light from the constellation of Aries illuminated the ram carving with a yellow glow on the Star Palace's wall and shined down toward one of Earth's many forests. Amongst the trees, a large yellow tank activated. It rolled through the foliage on powerful treads. The front of the massive machine had been shaped like a ram's head with large silver horns and eyes.

"Pink Capricorn Starzord!" The constellation of Capricorn gave off a brilliant shine as the goat carving lit up with pink light. Streams of bright light shined down on the sea and from its depths emerged a giant white robot goat. Pink stripes ran down its back, legs, sides, underside, and the center of its head. Its golden horns served as a plough against the waves before it jumped onto land and galloped across the world.

"Blue Scorpio Starzord!" The rays of light from the constellation Scorpio illuminated the scorpion carving on the wall of the Star Palace with a blue shine. The light went on to shine upon a desert and the sands shifted to give way to an enormous blue mechanical scorpion. It snapped its enormous claws as it raised its tail with its silver stinger. Four red eyes shimmered as it ran across the sands on its eight legs.

"Red Leo Starzord!" The constellation Leo emitted a brilliant radiance and the lion carving on the Star Palace's wall illuminated bright red. The light shined down upon the Earth and a large explosion erupted from the peak of a volcano as an enormous mechanical lion jumped out from the fiery crater. It roared as it ran down the side of the mountain on four legs, its golden mane shining along with its piercing golden eyes while its silver fangs gleamed in the sunlight.

With the five Starzords summoned, the Power Rangers jumped into the air and boarded their respective Zords. The Red Ranger landed inside his cockpit and took his seat in front of his console consisting of two control sticks, a screen, and several buttons and switches plus a pullout keyboard just underneath it and a set of pedals on the floor. On the wall behind him was a carving of his Leo medallion. "This is Tim. All Rangers report in."

"Jaycee here, ready to go."

"Brian reporting in. All systems online."

"This is Miranda. I'm ready and set."

"Yo, it's Chance. Let's whoop this guy!"

"Your pathetic toys won't be able to stop me!" Draco snarled as the Zords came at him at full force. He swung Eltanin at the Leo Zord, but missed. Tim took the opportunity to drive it forward and pounced, knocking the dragon knight down. Draco, being the seasoned fighter he was, was quick to get back onto his feet.

"You're not going anywhere!" Miranda pressed a button on her console and her Aries Zord fired its horns at Draco from behind, each one attached to a chain connected to her Zord's head. They wrapped around the knight's shoulders and restrained him.

"All systems ready to go." Brian flipped a switch and his Scorpio Zord opened up its claws and revealed a pair of missiles hidden in each. He gripped his control sticks tightly and pulled the triggers. The missiles launched and they struck the immobilized Draco hard, exploding on contact with his armor.

Jaycee, meanwhile, had lined up her Capricorn Zord beside Brian's and flipped a couple of switches and pushed a button. "Opening fire!" Her Zord's eyes flashed twice before firing a pair of pink lasers that struck her target.

"You're more trouble than you're worth!" Draco grabbed the chains that held him and pulled hard. Miranda yelled as her Zord was thrown into the air and landed on top of Brian's and Jaycee's. "Now feel the dragon's rage!" Draco opened his mouth and breathed out an intense stream of fire at the pile of Zords.

"Hey! Back off them, mofo!" Chance pressed down on his acceleration pedal and his Taurus Zord charged in at full speed. He rammed into Draco's leg at maximum power, hitting him on the side of his knee and forcing him off of the other Zords.

Tim's Leo Zord roared as it came around again and pounced, this time with claws extended. It landed on top of the dragon knight and proceeded raking him with its sharp appendages. Draco snarled and knocked it off with his tail before standing back up.

"Feel the power of Eltanin!" White flames surrounded the blade of his sword and Draco stabbed it into the ground, causing explosions all around the Starzords.

"We need more power," Tim called to his fellow Rangers, "Let's bring them together!"

"Initiating Megazord sequence!" Once again the five Starzords assembled and things began. The Capricorn Zord's body folded up, bringing its rear up to its front and connecting the hind legs up with the forelegs as the head split in two and moved out onto the sides where there would be hips. The Taurus and Aries Zords' heads rose up and slid to the backs of their respective bodies. In doing so, the place that they had once occupied extended out to form feet while the heads positioned themselves upon what would become knees. They threw themselves into reverse and connected with the Capricorn Zord, the Taurus Zord forming the right leg and the Aries Zord forming the left.

As the construct rose into an upright position, the Leo Zord's back opened up to reveal a docking station. The Scorpio Zord folded in its legs and slid into it perfectly head-to-head with the red mech, whose forelegs folded into themselves and then rotated to form pauldrons over the blue machine's shoulders. As the second construct moved to connect with the first, the Scorpio Zord's arms lowered and the claws opened and folded back all the way, allowing the missile launchers within to extend outward and then rotate one hundred and eighty degrees, replacing them with hands and then sliding back to lock them in place. The rear of the Leo Zord opened up to allow its hind legs to fold into its body and it proceeded to dock with the Capricon Zord. Once all five Starzords had finished combining, the Scorpio Zord's tail wrapped around to form a belt as the Leo Zord's head folded down to form the chest and revealed to the world a robot head with a silver human face, yellow eyes, and a golden crest shaped like four-point star affixed to the front of its bright red helmet.

Within the combined cockpit, the five Rangers sat with Tim in the middle, Brian and Jaycee to his left, and Chance and Miranda to his right. "Star Force Megazord online!"

"I will tear you apart!" Draco snarled.

"We'll fight you on even ground." Tim opened a channel to the Star Palace. "Cassiopeia, we need a weapon! A sword of some kind."

o o o

"Understood, Rangers." Cassiopeia rose up from her throne and held her arms out. "I call upon the power of the stars, ancient forces near and far. Grant unto the guardians a weapon of might and bathe them in your glorious light! The Star Sword cometh!" Starlight shined down on the Star Palace and the sword in the courtyard suddenly began to glow. Its hilt changed into gold with five shining gems embedded into it, one red, one blue, one yellow, one pink, and one green. The blade was wrapped in light and transformed from stone to steel. Its transformation complete, the sword rose out of the pedestal and flew down to Earth.

o o o

The Star Sword descended onto the battlefield and was caught by the Star Force Megazord. Draco rushed in and swung his Eltanin. The Megazord swung his arm and blocked the first attack. The Dragon pulled away and swung low. Once again his blade was blocked. He tried a thrust but his opponent sidestepped and deflected his blade aside allowing it to slam its left leg into his gut. However, Draco was no fool. Shortly after he was kicked, he wrapped his tail around the leg on which the Megazord stood and pulled. The giant robot fell hard and he took the opportunity to land several blows. After three successful hits, the Megazord raised the Star Sword and blocked. That didn't stop Cepheus' general, however. With both blades locked, he jabbed with his free hand and his claws struck the Megazord's chest, causing a shower of sparks to burst out. Then he kicked it up into the air and then spun around to kick it away. The Power Rangers braced themselves as their combined Zords hit the ground hard.

"Taste Eltanin's power!" Draco's sword began to glow with white flames once again and thrusting it into the ground caused explosions to erupt all around his opponent. "Now burn!" He opened his mouth and flames poured out onto the Megazord.

"I got this!" Chance's chair descended from the cockpit and re-entered the Taurus Zord. "Launch!" There was a loud hiss and his Zord detached from the Megazord, returning to its original form. He floored the accelerator pedal and rammed into Draco hard. The dragon knight ceased his flames and fell. The Taurus Zord turned back into its leg form and reattached to the Megazord before letting the Green Ranger return to the cockpit. The massive machine got back up and steadied itself.

"I'm next." Brian pushed a button his console and the Megazord's free hand swapped out with a missile launcher. It took aim and fired two missiles that struck Draco and knocked him flat on his back. Having used both shots, the launcher retreated and the hand reappeared.

"Alright, everyone. Altogether now!" Tim led the Rangers as they prepared to deal the final bow.

"Starlight Strike!" The five gems of the Star Sword lit up as the Megazord pointed it skyward and a ray of light bestowed power unto it, causing the blade to glow gold and white. The Rangers raised their hands up and then swung them downward in a sword-like motion. The Megazord followed their movements and unleashed a powerful wave of light from the Star Sword's blade with the stroke.

Draco growled with rage as he jumped back onto his feet. "This is not the end!" And with that he vanished in a flash of fire, the light wave just missing him.

"Come back here and fight like a man!" shouted Chance.

"I get the feeling he'll be back," said Tim, "But we'll be ready."

The Megazord powered down the Star Sword and lowered its arm as the sunlight gleamed off its armor.

o o o

"Incompetent fools!" Cepheus slammed his staff against the floor with such force that sparks flew from it on impact. "Draco, how could you have been defeated? You're a dragon warrior!"

"My apologies, my King," Draco said as he knelt with his hands on the hilt of his sword, "I swear that I shall defeat whoever these 'Power Rangers' are."

"And as for you two." Cepheus turned to Telescopium and Triangulum. "Why haven't you fixed the design flaw with the Astrals yet?"

"We still haven't finished developing the technology yet, my King," Telescopium answered as he cowered in fear of his master's wrath.

"Yeah, we still got things we need to do," Triangulum added.

"SILENCE!" Cepheus banged the Star Sceptre against the floor and an explosion of sparks erupted all over the throne room. "First you let the princess escape, then an entire platoon of Astral Warriors were destroyed, and now my general has been defeated by these strange creatures. Just what are they anyway?" He walked over to his scrying orb and watched it as it focused an image. The Megazord had disassembled and the individual Starzords had already left. Now the Power Rangers were powering down. As their suits and helmets disappeared, Cepheus could not believe what he was seeing.

"YOU WERE DEFEATED BY CHILDREN?!" he roared as he turned to his subordinates. "I SHOULD RETURN YOU ALL TO THE STARS FROM WHENCE YOU CAME!"

"Oh please don't do that!" Triangulum begged.

"I said SILENCE!" Cepheus pointed his staff at the triangular creature and blasted him with a powerful burst of magic that sent him crashing into the far wall. The Star King sat down on his throne and banged his hand on the armrest.

"I swear I will hunt down Andromeda and complete the Star Sceptre if it's the last thing I do. And no one, especially not _children_, will stand in my way!"

o o o

"Rangers, thank you for your brave assistance." The Rangers were now back in the Star Palace's throne room standing before Cassiopeia. "Thanks to you, Cepheus has been thwarted."

"But mother, there is a great chance that he will not give up so easily," Andromeda pointed out.

"That is indeed true. Rangers, can we count on your assistance until Cepheus has been defeated for good?" Cassiopeia asked.

The five Rangers looked back and forth between each other before finally turning back to the Queen. "Count me in. This is my dream come true!" Tim said excitedly.

"Well I always like to help people. I guess you can't help people any more than being a Power Ranger," Jaycee resolved.

"Ditto," Miranda agreed.

"That Draco guy _threw_ me. I'm not letting him off that easy," said Chance.

"Well, someone's gotta keep Chance out of trouble," Brian added.

"Then from this day on, you five shall be the legendary Star Force," Cassiopeia declared.

Tim held his hand out and Brian placed his on top followed by Jaycee, then Miranda, and finally Chance. They looked at each other with confident smiles and broke.

"POWER RANGERS!"

* * *

Hope you've all enjoyed it. Updates will be made irregularly.


	2. Curiosity Killed the Cat

**Disclaimer:** The _Power Rangers_ title is the property Haim Saban and Saban Entertainment.

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**POWER RANGERS STAR FORCE**

**Curiosity Killed the Cat**

"Alright, everyone. Let's take it from the beginning!" The teacher took his seat in one of the chairs facing the stage area of the small bare-walled room. On the large flat surface that was supposedly a stage, Tim and a female student stepped out from opposite sides.

"How now, spirit! whither wander you?" Tim recited from the lines he had memorized, although he and his scene partner both held a copy of the script in their hands just in case.

"Over hill, over dale, Thorough bush, thorough brier, Over park, over pale, Thorough flood, thorough fire, I do wander everywhere, Swifter than the moon's sphere; And I serve the fairy queen, To dew her orbs upon the green. The cowslips tall her pensioners be: In their gold coats spots you see; Those be rubies, fairy favours, In those freckles live their savours: I must go seek some dewdrops here And hang a pearl in every cowslip's ear. Farewell, thou lob of spirits; I'll be gone: Our queen and all our elves come here anon."

"The king doth keep his revels here to-night: Take heed the queen come not within his sight; For Oberon is passing fell and wrath, Because that she as her attendant hath A lovely boy, stolen from an Indian king; She never had so sweet a changeling; And jealous Oberon would have the child Knight of his train, to trace the forests wild; But she perforce withholds the loved boy, Crowns him with flowers and makes him all her joy: And now they never meet in grove or green, By fountain clear, or spangled starlight sheen, But, they do square, that all their elves for fear Creep into acorn-cups and hide them there."

"Either I mistake your shape and making quite, Or else you are that shrewd and knavish sprite Call'd Robin Goodfellow: are not you he That frights the maidens of the villagery; Skim milk, and sometimes labour in the quern And bootless make the breathless housewife churn; And sometime make the drink to bear no barm; Mislead night-wanderers, laughing at their harm? Those that Hobgoblin call you and sweet Puck, You do their work, and they shall have good luck: Are not you he? "

"Thou speak'st aright; I am that merry wanderer of the night. I jest to Oberon and make him smile When I a fat and bean-fed horse beguile, Neighing in likeness of a filly foal: And sometime lurk I in a gossip's bowl, In very likeness of a roasted crab, And when she drinks, against her lips I bob And on her wither'd dewlap pour the ale. The wisest aunt, telling the saddest tale, Sometime for three-foot stool mistaketh me; Then slip I from her bum, down topples she, And 'tailor' cries, and falls into a cough; And then the whole quire hold their hips and laugh, And waxen in their mirth and neeze and swear A merrier hour was never wasted there. But, room, fairy! here comes Oberon."

"And here my mistress. Would that he were gone!"

As two more students stepped out onto the stage, the female student stepped off while Tim stepped back, trying a little to hide the gold lion ring on his finger.

o o o

"One! Two! Three! Four! Five! Come on, everyone. Keep it fluid!" Brian walked back and forth in a gymnasium wearing a white gi and a blue shirt underneath. His thumbs were tucked under his black belt as he observed his class of twenty students ranging from ages six to twelve. He had his watch looped around his belt, which in turn had been threaded through a silver scorpion ring. "Six! Seven! Eight! Nine! Ten! And breathe in. And out slowly." He continued his pacing as he observed the kids.

"Good work. Now everyone have a seat." Brian waited until his students had sat down. "Green belts, step forward please." Six kids stood back up and came to the front of the class. They stood in a line and faced their fellow classmates. On their sensei's instruction, they began to perform their _kata_ before the others. Brian stood to the side and observed them carefully. The three on the right were the best of the class, being the closest to achieving their next rank. The other three were close behind them. However, the six of them together were by far the most disciplined of his students. He hoped the others would learn from them.

o o o

Jaycee was at work. She stood behind the counter at the front of a family restaurant with a pile of menus beside her. It was about mid-afternoon, so it was fairly quiet. She looked up from her work when she saw three people walk in. "Table for three, please." Jaycee then looked at the floor plan of the restaurant in front of her and marked a table before grabbing three menus off the pile.

"This way please." She led them through the dining room to their table and distributed the menus as they sat down. "Your server will be with you in a moment." She left them to return to her post, a silver goat ring on her finger shining in the light coming in from the windows.

o o o

Miranda was at home. There was really nothing for her to do today, so she stayed at home to do some drawing. She was working off her tablet trying to draw a picture of two of her favorite characters from a televsion show. However the tablet was doing a horrible job at picking up her stylus strokes. It was probably time to get a new one, she thought. In fact it seemed very likely.

o o o

Chance was in the comic shop browsing through the comics as per his weekly custom. He always came into the shop at least twice a week, once to buy comics and the other to participate in one of the shop's weekly card game tournaments. Occasionally he would come in on his own another time or with somebody for some reason or other, but that did not happen to often. Once he selected his comics, he went to the cashier to pay for them. He had a feeling that this week was going to be good.

o o o

High above the planet, Castle Nebula continued its orbit around the Earth. Telescopium was in his observatory when the doors behind him hissed open and Cepheus stepped in. The room itself was tall and cylindrical with a domed ceiling. Save for a table, a chair, and a light, the only other object in the room was the impressive telescope which rose high up the room surrounded by a spiral staircase and expanded through an opening in the roof, giving Telescopium the ability to see out toward the stars.

"Telescopium, I must find something to destroy those Rangers with," the King said as he planted his feet down and banged the Star Sceptre against the floor.

"Well my King, I've been searching and I may have found something we can use," Telescopium reported, "Look here." He stepped away from his telescope and Cepheus made his way up the stairs and peered through it.

"Lynx?" he questioned.

"Yes. He is an ideal hunter. He can find those Rangers and dispose of them quickly. He is quite the savage beast, so I do not know how well he will obey orders."

"He will obey _my_ orders!" Cepheus descended from the telescope and Telescopium followed. They walked back to the throne room where Draco and Triangulum stood at attention upon his return.

"My King, please allow me another chance against these Rangers," the dragon knight pleaded as he bowed whilst saluting.

"Your time will come, Draco," Cepheus said calmly, "But first we must find out who the Rangers are. Then you can dispose off them." He looked up into space and watched as the constellation Lynx passed before him. "I call on the spirit of the savage beast. Lynx, come forth!" Cepheus thrust the Star Sceptre toward the stars and a beam of light shot forward and engulfed the constellation in its radiance. He ceased his spell and watched as the stars blinked and suddenly a loud feline roar filled the air as a humanoid, yet still clearly cat-like, monster appeared in the throne room. He stood like a bipedal lynx covered in bright orange fur. He had the face of a wildcat with sharp whiskers and stripes on either side of his face and two pointed ears. A long mane of fiery orange hair trailed down his head, which was adorned with a spiky orange collar. He was dressed like a jungle man with just a loincloth, but he also wore armor on his shoulders that was held in place by leather straps that crisscrossed across his chest and back, metal bracers on his arms and legs, as well as an armored belt around his waist. His hands and feet were notably large and possessed sharp claws.

"Who dares call upon the savage Lynx?" he snarled.

"I dare." Cepheus stood before him. "I am Cepheus, King of the Stars. And I have summoned you with a task."

Lynx snarled. "Nobody commands the savage Lynx!" Draco immediately placed himself in front of his king and drew his sword.

"Step no closer and kneel before your king!" Lynx roared and charged. Draco raised Eltanin and swung downward, but the wildcat monster caught the blade in his claws.

Cepheus stepped forward and fired a burst of magic from his staff that stunned Lynx and then he pointed his weapon at him and an aura of radiance surrounded the creature, allowing the King to bring him to his knees. "You will kneel before your king."

Lynx snarled but reluctantly succumbed. "I will…kneel…before my…my king…"

"Excellent." Cepheus ceased his spell and brought the Star Sceptre into rest position. "Now listen, Lynx. You are the one of the best hunters in the universe, correct?"

"One of the best? Bah! I AM the best!"

"Then prove it. Find the Power Rangers. Discover their identities and then I want you to destroy them!"

"The hunt is on, my King!" Lynx roared and vanished in a burst of fire.

"My King, do you really believe Lynx will find the Rangers?" Draco questioned.

"Of course not. But he will serve well as bait to lure them out," Cepheus answered "But if he does prove to be worth more than I give him credit for, then this will be over much sooner than we thought. Prepare a platoon of Astrals for standby."

o o o

Lynx appeared just outside the city next to a large sign that said, "Welcome to St. Rose". He snarled and let out a roar, which attracted the attention of several passing drivers. In their distracted state, most of which happened upon seeing a giant lynx creature standing by the road, many of them lost control and wound up hitting each other or going off the road.

"I must find the Rangers!" Lynx snarled and began to prowl. He listened and smelled carefully. Then with lightning-quick reflexes he jumped and headed into town. Upon his arrival he let out a roar which caused many citizens to turn and then run away screaming at the sight of him.

"It's no use! I will find the Rangers!"

o o o

"My Queen, there's danger on Earth!" Caelum cried.

"Quickly Caelum, summon the Rangers," ordered Cassiopeia.

"Right away!" The robotic creature replied as he began tapping his chest.

o o o

"See you guys tomorrow!" Tim had just finished his theatre class and was just leaving when his phone rang. He looked at the number and quickly looked around before running off to a quiet spot. "This is Tim. What's going on, Caelum?"

"Emergency. Come to the Star Palace immediately," Caelum urged.

"I'm on my way." After hanging up, Tim double-checked to make sure nobody was around and then touched two fingers to his ring. Its eyes lit up red before he vanished toward the sky.

o o o

Brian had just finished changing into his street clothes when he got the call. Making sure nobody could see him, he touched his scorpion ring to teleport skyward in a blur of blue light.

o o o

Jaycee had finished work and was just about to enter her home when her phone rang. After she had answered it, she touched the goat ring on her finger and disappeared.

o o o

Miranda was still at home when she received the call and quickly passed her hand over her ram ring which teleported her toward the Star Palace.

o o o

"And that's why I think that's just how it should be," the kid finished.

"Bull-" Chance never got to finish as his phone rang and he answered it. "I'm in the middle of something."

"Chance," Caelum's voice came through, "Come to the Star Palace. It's an emergency."

"We'll finish this later." Chance left the store and rounded the corner into the alley beside the building. Once he was certain he was clear, he brought up his hand and touched his bull ring to teleport.

o o o

The five Rangers arrived at the Star Palace simultaneously. "Cassiopeia, what's up?" asked Brian.

"Caelum, show them please," the Queen requested.

"Right away." Caelum tapped at his chest and his face lit up and displayed a hologram.

"What is that?" asked Miranda.

"That is Lynx, one of the constellations visible from your planet," Cassiopeia explained, "Cepheus has turned it into a monster in order to find you and lure you out."

"Well he's going to succeed," said Chance.

"He's definitely luring us out," Jaycee agreed.

"Yes. Even though that is his plan, you must comply with it to save those innocents," Cassiopeia said.

"Well, we have no choice then." Tim stepped forward. "Let's do it, guys." He and the others held up their bracelet wrists and touched two fingers to their respective signs, which transformed them into their Star Transers.

"Star Force, Light It Up!"

"Taurus Star Force Power!"

"Capricorn Star Force Power!"

"Aries Star Force Power!"

"Scorpio Star Force Power!"

"Leo Star Force Power!"

Once morphed, the Rangers teleported down to St. Rose downtown where Lynx had already begun to wreak havoc.

"Where are you Rangers?" he snarled loudly.

"You called?" Tim's voice rang out. Lynx turned and saw the Power Rangers standing on a rooftop.

"A raging beast has no place in our quiet city!"

"We'll show you the power we have!"

"In the name of Cassiopeia, we will stop you!"

"We are the guardians of the Earth!"

"We are the defenders of the peace!"

"_**Power Rangers Star Force!"**_

"There you are, Power Rangers!" Lynx snarled and roared as the Rangers jumped off the building and landed gracefully on the cement. "Astrals, come down!" Several meteors came crashing down around the feline creature and deposited a platoon of Astrals.

"Rangers, ready!" On Tim's command, all five Rangers summoned their weapons.

"Attack!" roared Lynx and the Astrals charged, chakrams drawn. The two opposing forces met in the middle and the battle commenced.

Jaycee backed away as two Astrals swung at her. She swung her fans and deflected several of their attacks before kicking one away. The other she turned on and got inside its guard by blocking its swings on the inside. It tried to pull back, but she closed her fans and hooked them over its arms. Now that she had control over her opponent, she began hitting it in the stomach with her knees. When she finally released it from her grasp, she kicked it back and then opened her fans and slashed it across the chest.

Brian thrust his Scorpio Staff into the stomach of an incoming Astral. As another one came toward him from behind, he grasped his weapon and thrust it backward, sliding it through the centers of his attacker's weapons. He spun the staff and knocked the chakrams out of his opponent's hands before spinning around and kicking him back. Another Astral suddenly came and grabbed Brian from behind, but the Blue Ranger had his own back covered. He shifted his weapon in his hand and fired a Scorpio Sting into his attacker. The Astral was caught off guard, allowing Brian to break free and elbow it in the stomach before knocking it back with his Scorpio Staff.

A shot rang out as Chance blew away another Astral with his Taurus Rifle. He cocked it and the empty shell flew out and clattered to the cement as he loaded his next shot and fired it at another footsoldier. The Green Ranger didn't seem too focused on trying to aim for their weakspots. One Astral charged at him from behind, but he dropped down and swept its feet out from under it. As it landed on its back, Chance stood up back up and fired a shot into its chest, causing the Astral to implode and leave behind only its armor. As three more enemies charged in, he kicked the fallen footsoldier's helmet toward them before rushing forward in their confusion and striking their heads with his fist.

Five Astrals charged up their chakrams and threw them all at once. Miranda stood her ground and spun her kamas to deflect them aside, trying to conserve as much energy as she could. Once the last one had been knocked aside, she drew back her arm. "My turn." Before the chakrams could return to their owners, she charged up her weapons and unleashed an electric burst that coursed through her enemies at once. An Astral suddenly came at her from behind, but she thrust her weapons over her shoulders and hooked the blades under its armpits before flinging over her head and into the pile of its electrified comrades. One more came in using its chakrams as melee weapons and she exchanged blows with it before using one of her kamas to hook one of the circular blades and pulled it out of its hand. She then smacked it on the head with the end of her weapons and kicked the Astral back.

Meanwhile Tim was engaging Lynx in battle. The feral feline was ferocious and swung his arms repeatedly trying to shred him with his claws. The Red Ranger fought bravely with his sword, but could only block and deflect blows as they came. "Do you honestly think that puny sword can stand up to my claws?" Lynx snarled as he continued swiping at his opponent. Tim raised his weapon and blocked again before shoving him back as hard as he could.

"Leo's Roar!" His blade was suddenly ablaze with fire and he swung his sword, sending a wave of flame at Lynx and knocking him back. He then rushed in and slashed him across the chest.

Lynx rolled across the ground and got back to his feet. "Bah! I cannot fight in this concrete jungle!" And with that, he got down on all fours and ran away.

"After him!" Tim yelled.

"How? He's too fast!" said Brian.

"Leave that to me," Andromeda's voice said. Up at the Star Palace, the Princess turned to one of her drawers and opened it, taking out a jar with five shimmering lights inside. She opened it and the lights flew out and grew, turning into five small comets that shot down from the palace and landed in front of the rangers, depositing five silver motorcycles, each with streamlined designs trailing from the back and including the Rangers' respective colors.

o o o

"What are those?" asked Caelum.

"I suspect Andromeda has something to do with them," said Cassiopeia as her daughter entered the throne room.

"I made them from those comets we collected a long time ago when we were on vacation in the Feramoon galaxy," Andromeda answered, "I call them the Cometcycles."

o o o

The Power Rangers looked at their gifts from above and admired them. "These are amazing!" Tim exclaimed.

"They're beautiful," Miranda commented.

"Looks fast," Brian said as he examined his more closely.

We should be able to catch up with him then," said Jaycee.

"I wanted a Harley," was all Chance said.

"You get what the space princess gives you," responded Miranda.

The Rangers mounted their Cometcycles and took off, each leaving a stream of light of their respective rider's color behind them.

o o o

Lynx was still running along the highway trying to get to wherever it was he wanted. "I shouldn't be much longer now." Suddenly lasers shot forward from behind him and struck the ground. "What the?" He turned his head and saw the Power Rangers coming toward him firing lasers from their Cometcycles.

"Everyone again!" Tim called out. The Rangers squeezed the triggers on their handlebars and fired more shots at Lynx, trying their best to drive him off the road.

"We need more firepower," said Brian, "This isn't enough!"

"I got this." Chance stood up on his Cometcycle and drew his Taurus Rifle. He fired off several shots that exploded around Lynx before finally hitting his target. The large cat tumbled across the road and finally came to a stop. The Rangers stopped and got off their bikes and approached him.

"You can't win," snarled Lynx, "The hunted do not defeat the hunter!"

"I think it's time to end this," announced Tim, "Bring them together!"

First Miranda attached her kamas to the sides of Chance's gun with the blades pointed outward. Then Jaycee attached her fans to the sides as well. Next they attached the end of Brian's staff to the butt of the rifle and finally locked the hilt of Tim's sword inside the barrel. When their weapons had finally been assembled, the Rangers had created a massive spear.

"What is that?" Lynx demanded.

"The end for you," answered Tim as Brian and Miranda held onto his shoulders and hips while Jaycee and Chance respectively held onto theirs.

"Not if I get you first!" roared Lynx. He snarled as he scratched the ground and charged forward at full speed.

"Cosmic Lance!" Tim spun the spear around once as the head began to glow and he lowered it to his side before thrusting the combined weapon forward. A light extended from the tip and impaled Lynx through the chest. As the light faded, the feline monstrosity staggered backward and the Rangers separated their weapons and turned their back on him as Lynx fell and his body exploded.

o o o

"Bad news, my King," Telescopium reported, "Lynx has fallen."

"You know how much I hate incompetence," Cepheus said as he stood up from his throne and walked to the balcony, "But in this case, I must give him a second chance." He held up the Star Sceptre. "I call upon the Star of Might. Bathe my monster in your light!" The stars began to line up and once they had formed a single line the light from the Star of Might passed along them and shot toward Earth.

o o o

On Earth, Lynx was bathed in the light of the Star of Might. There was a flash followed by an explosion and the ferocious feline grew into a giant. "Now we can truly play cat and mouse!" he roared.

"Spirits of the stars, we call upon you to lend us your power!" the Power Rangers cried in unison with their hands outstretched toward the sky.

"Green Taurus Starzord!" A light shined forth from the constellation of Taurus and illuminated the bull carving on the Star Palace's wall with a green radiance. The light then shined upon the Earth and from a large mountain range, a big green tank burst out from the rocks. It rode low but fast on four sets of treads which were located under two pairs of leg-like decorative designs. The front was a large bull's head with golden eyes, horns, and a nose ring.

"Yellow Aries Starzord!" Light from the constellation of Aries illuminated the ram carving with a yellow glow on the Star Palace's wall and shined down toward one of Earth's many forests. Amongst the trees, a large yellow tank activated. It rolled through the foliage on powerful treads. The front of the massive machine had been shaped like a ram's head with large silver horns and eyes.

"Pink Capricorn Starzord!" The constellation of Capricorn gave off a brilliant shine as the goat carving lit up with pink light. Streams of bright light shined down on the sea and from its depths emerged a giant white robot goat. Pink stripes ran down its back, legs, sides, underside, and the center of its head. Its golden horns served as a plough against the waves before it jumped onto land and galloped across the world.

"Blue Scorpio Starzord!" The rays of light from the constellation Scorpio illuminated the scorpion carving on the wall of the Star Palace with a blue shine. The light went on to shine upon a desert and the sands shifted to give way to an enormous blue mechanical scorpion. It snapped its enormous claws as it raised its tail with its silver stinger. Four red eyes shimmered as it ran across the sands on its eight legs.

"Red Leo Starzord!" The constellation Leo emitted a brilliant radiance and the lion carving on the Star Palace's wall illuminated bright red. The light shined down upon the Earth and a large explosion erupted from the peak of a volcano as an enormous mechanical lion jumped out from the fiery crater. It roared as it ran down the side of the mountain on four legs, its golden mane shining along with its piercing golden eyes while its silver fangs gleamed in the sunlight.

With the five Starzords summoned, the Power Rangers jumped into the air and boarded their respective Zords. The Red Ranger landed inside his cockpit and took his seat. "This is Tim. All Rangers report in."

"Jaycee here."

"Brian reporting in."

"This is Miranda."

"Yo, it's Chance."

"Let's bring them together!" Tim commanded.

The Capricorn Zord's body folded up, bringing its rear up to its front and connecting the hind legs up with the forelegs as the head split in two and moved out onto the sides where there would be hips. The Taurus and Aries Zords' heads rose up and slid to the backs of their respective bodies. In doing so, the place that they had once occupied extended out to form feet while the heads positioned themselves upon what would become knees. They threw themselves into reverse and connected with the Capricorn Zord, the Taurus Zord forming the right leg and the Aries Zord forming the left.

As the construct rose into an upright position, the Leo Zord's back opened up to reveal a docking station. The Scorpio Zord folded in its legs and slid into it perfectly head-to-head with the red mech, whose forelegs folded into themselves and then rotated to form pauldrons over the blue machine's shoulders. As the second construct moved to connect with the first, the Scorpio Zord's arms lowered and the claws opened and folded back all the way, allowing the missile launchers within to extend outward and then rotate one hundred and eighty degrees, replacing them with hands and then sliding back to lock them in place. The rear of the Leo Zord opened up to allow its hind legs to fold into its body and it proceeded to dock with the Capricon Zord. Once all five Starzords had finished combining, the Scorpio Zord's tail wrapped around to form a belt as the Leo Zord's head folded down to form the chest and revealed the Megazord's head.

"Star Force Megazord online!"

"I will tear you apart shred by shred!" Lynx ran toward the Megazord and brought his claws down onto its shoulders, but the mechanical giant raised its arms and knocked him back before swinging a punch at his face. The ferocious feline recovered quickly and ducked another punch to make a swipe at his opponent's waist. His claws made contact and a large shower of sparks erupted from the impact. The Megazord spun around with another swing, but Lynx avoided that as well.

"Take this!" snarled Lynx. His fur stood up on end and he began pelting the Megazord with a rain of needle-like hairs. Small explosions erupted all over giant robot and caused it to stagger backward.

"We're taking heavy fire!" Jaycee reported.

As soon as Lynx let up his attack he pounced onto the Megazord and used his weight to bring it down to the ground. He then proceeded to maul it with his fangs, causing more sparks to shower out.

"I'm going out there!" Chance yelled.

"It won't do any good," responded Brian, "Your Zord can't reach him. He isn't on the ground for you to ram him."

"Then I guess it's up to me then." Miranda's seat descended from the Megazord cockpit and into that of the Aries Starzord. "Detach!" Her Zord separated and folded back into its original form. She drove some distance away and turned around. "Here we go." She pulled her trigger and the horns from her Zord shot out and wrapped around Lynx's shoulders. Once her target was ensnared she threw the Aries Zord into reverse and floored the gas pedal. The sudden movement jerked Lynx back and threw him off the Megazord.

"Go for it now, Brian!" Tim cried.

"I'm on it!" Brian slammed his console and both of the Megazord's hands swapped out for the Scorpio Starzord's original missile launchers. The giant robot sat up and the Blue Ranger pulled the trigger, firing off all four projectiles at once. Miranda quickly released her hold and drove away as the missiles hit their mark and exploded against Lynx. The Aries Starzord reattached to the Star Force Megazord, allowing it to stand back up, and the Yellow Ranger rejoined her team in the cockpit.

"Cassiopeia, we need the Star Sword," said Tim.

"Here it comes!" the Queen replied. Within the Star Palace, the Star Sword was pulled from its resting place in the garden and sent down to Earth. When it arrived on the battlefield, the Megazord grabbed it.

"You'll pay for that!" Lynx snarled as he got up, but suddenly felt cold steel against him as he rose. The Megazord drew its arm back and cut deep into his shoulder. The Rangers wasted no time and dealt several more slashes to their target before kicking him back.

"Let's finish it now," declared Tim.

"Starlight Strike!" The Star Sword was imbued with the cosmic powers of the stars and the Megazord swung it to release a wave of light that struck Lynx. The ferocious feline was thrown back and upon landing on the ground exploded. The Megazord stood tall as the sunlight reflected off its body and its sword.

o o o

"My King, please do not be upset!" begged Telescopium.

"Do I look upset?" Cepheus questioned as he sat on his throne staring at his scrying orb.

"Well…no," replied the Telescope.

"Then perhaps you'd best cease your incessant noise before I _do_ get upset."

"Yes, my King." Telescopium backed away and left the throne room as Cepheus resumed watching his scrying orb.

"Lynx failed to track the Power Rangers and discover their identities, but his efforts were not wasted. His sacrifice means only that I can now scry for myself their identities." The Star King leaned in closer as he watched the Starzords return to their hiding places for standby and paid especially close attention as the Rangers unmorphed.

"I know who you are now, Rangers. And soon I will know everything about you."

o o o

"That lynx thing was a pain," Miranda sighed as the Rangers rested in the Star Palace.

"Lynx was but the first of many constellations Cepheus will attempt to bring to life to hunt us down," Cassiopeia explained.

"Well I guess now we know what we're up against," Brian thought out loud, "But just what is Cepheus capable of with the Star Sceptre?"

"Be thankful he never got the last piece," Caelum stated.

"And we're going to make sure he never does," Tim assured him as well as Cassiopeia and Andromeda.

"That's going to be easier said than done," Jaycee reminded everybody.

"I'm not worried," said Chance, "I'll punch Cepheus' face in so hard, he's gonna…"

"Okay, I'm just going to stop you right there," Tim interrupted.

"We truly appreciate what you are doing, Rangers," Andromeda said gratefully.

"As the Power Rangers Star Force, you shall uphold your duties as guardians," said Cassiopeia.

Tim, Brian, Miranda, Chance, and Jaycee looked from the Queen over to Andromeda and then at each other. They nodded in understanding. They were a team and together they would do everything it took to stop Cepheus.

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* * *

And so concludes the second chapter of _Power Rangers Star Force_. Standard footnotes, et cetera, derpy derpy doo.


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